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January 20, 2010

BioSpain makes Spain a key country for biotechnology industry

Spain has had an early development of biotechnology, and therefore has become one of the countries with most potential for growth within this area.

The main advantage is the excellent background investigator from the scientific community in Spain (publications, qualifications, etc.). Our country experienced the highest growth between 2004 and 2006 in number of companies with biotech activity (+53%) and completely biotech companies (+30%), according figures from OCDE.

In 2006 Spain ranked eighth in number of biotech companies completely, just behind the Netherlands and ahead of countries like Switzerland, Finland or Austria. Sector turnover reached €26.150 million and it employed 103.911 in 2007. The year-on-year increases for the two variables stood at 16% and 18% respectively. The number of enterprises making use of biotechnology in Spain came to 764, while the number of those companies considered strictly biotech was up 22% year-on-year to stand at 257 (versus the 211  reported the previous year) according to the latest data from INE. Almost 90,5% of the national biotechs are companies with fewer than 250 employees.

The development of this sector has been strengthened by the creation of the Spanish Association of Biocompanies (ASEBIO), which brings together 160 companies and institutions related to biotechnology that has fostered the creation of new enterprises, technology transfer from academia the enterprise, and progress in areas like health, agriculture, medical diagnosis and biofuels.

Regarding scientific publications of Spanish companies in various magazines and specialist media, 140 impacts have been computed which correspond to 22 ownership entities. In addition, we have identified 117 inventions in 2008 whose owners ASEBIO companies. Technological cooperation is one of the most cherished values as a facilitator of sector development.

One of the greatest achievements of ASEBIO has been the creation of BioSpain in 2003. This event, due to the importance of its contents and the affluence of professionals, has become the reference biotechnology fair in southern Europe.

This congress, held every two years in a different Spanish city, has the next meeting between September 29, 2010 and 1 october 2010. Pamplona will host the fifth edition of this international meeting, aimed at businesses, academics, researchers, funders and organizations related to Spanish and international biotechnology sector, where topics regarding the main aspects of biotechnology environment: science, politics and society, development business, finance and trade promotion, will be deeply discussed.

The past edition, held in Granada in September 2008, attracted over 1.100 visitors/daily from 26 countries and displayed over 120 exhibitors. BioSpain 2010 expects to increase substantially this figures.

BioSpain host a scientific congress called Biotec 2010, organized by the Spanish Society of Biotechnology (SEBIOT). This congress has been designed to continue the tradition of previous Biotec meetings in order to bring together top scientists and students working in the biotechnology field. The thematic areas to be addressed the congress will be environmental biotechnology;  metabolic engineering and new products; systems biotechnology, biocatalysis, biotechnology & health, diagnostic technologies & animal models; omics & systems biology; food biotechnology; plant biotechnology; nanobiotechnology & bioinformatics;  biofuels & biomaterials and biotechnology & society.

One of the main advantage of BioSpain  2010 is partnering, the organization of one-to-one meetings between two companies for mutual benefit.  The meetings take place at a gathering, usually a conference or trade show. 

In BioSpain 2010, Investment  Forum allows international innovative biotechnology businesses to meet with an audience of leading biotech investors. Companies seeking international financing or partners have the opportunity to present their business projects to a panel of interested investors and corporate partners.

Plenary sessions and conferences have the highest level required for these events with presence of worldwide leading figures in the field of biotechnology.

Finally, the next edition of BioSpain will include a career fair where the companies of the sector and the new professionals will be able to explore job opportunities. Within the framework of “speaker corner” of this great fair-congress, personalities will occur to appointment, local and foreign enterprise delegations and companies that will make their development and potential with an agenda previously organized visible.

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